The $1,500 Ultra-Compact Mini-ITX PC Build

By Ari Altman

Published August 29, 2017

Updated September 15, 2017

This system is for builders who don't want to compromise on gaming capability even in a small system. It will easily fit an ultra-high-end video card and a standard ATX power supply. In fact, this system is nearly as fast as our full-size High-End Gaming PC Build, yet takes up barely 1/3 the space. That's perfect for gaming on the go, whether it's winning at the local LAN party or showing off the latest virtual reality title to your friends! In other words, despite its compact size, this is a totally legit high-end gaming PC, the equal of big towers that cost the same or more!

For September 2017, the biggest change is that we're actually starting to see the GeForce GTX 1070 8GB return to store shelves, which is good news for gamers looking to build up this system. The GTX 1070 is a perfect match for a compact gaming system, thanks to its excellent performance, compact dimensions, and very low power use. This system also features the very best gaming CPU you can buy, the Intel Core i7-7700K CPU, along with a cutting-edge Z270-based motherboard, 16GB of fast DDR4 RAM, and a 500W power supply. The most important component, however, is the case: the tiny SilverStone SG13, which truly has no peers, regardless of cost!

And guess what... you can learn exactly how to build this system by following our step-by-step Ultimate Mini PC Assembly Guide. Want extra reassurance? Then check out the fantastic set of photos and tips provided by one of our readers in The TBG Forum! Still have questions? Just post them in the Forum and we'll get back to you! We update this build every month, so feel free to flip over to The Archive to see how this build has changed over time.

The $1,500 Ultra-Compact Mini-ITX PC - September 2017

CPU:

For this build, we're going straight to the top: Intel's Core i7-7700K processor. Running at a base clock of 4.2GHz, it boosts to 4.4GHz under a quad-core load, and thanks to its high output per clock cycle, it's by far the fastest pure gaming CPU available. It also has serious overclocking headroom - every 7700K processor should be able to hit 4.7GHz even with the cooling provided by this compact system!

The Guru's Tip:

Please take note: the 7700K does not come with a CPU cooler. You must buy an aftermarket model, and we suggest a great cooler for this build later in this guide.

Motherboard:

This Z270 board offers all the best features of the Kaby Lake-based models. It includes the new premium ALC1220 audio, RGB lighting, as well as dual-stream 802.11ac wireless networking. In addition, it offers DisplayPort and HDMI outputs, and six USB ports, including a Type-C connector.

The Guru's Tip:

Only Z270-based ITX boards are guaranteed to support the 7700K processor. While Z170 boards can in theory do so, they need the latest firmware, and there's no way to know if they do until you try to boot them!

Video Card:

There's no better video card for a compact system than the powerful and ultra-efficient GeForce GTX 1070 8GB. It can easily drive games at 1080p, and has more than enough in reserve to take on 1440p resolutions as well. Note that we're specifically recommending a compact model, as most GTX 1070 models are actually too big to fit in this system. They absolutely must be 10.6" or shorter. And because the GTX 1070 is still in high demand, you may need to backorder one to get it at a good price.

The Guru's Tip:

Memory:

With the Skylake platform, you need to use DDR4 memory, and to get the most out of it, you want high frequency DDR4. Skylake responds more favorably to high-speed RAM than any previous platform, as we found in our recent DDR4 benchmark analysis. So we go with this awesome 2x8GB DDR4-3000 kit. Keep in mind that ITX motherboards only have two slots, so you'll be maxed out with two sticks. Luckily 16GB is the sweet spot for a high-end gaming rig!

The Guru's Tip:

Believe it or not, the price of tech gear sometimes goes up, and this is unfortunately the case with RAM. It has gone up in price over 100% since this time last year, due to supply shortages that are likely to continue through early 2018. We regularly update the RAM selection in this build to account for price changes.

Hard Drive:

For storage, we go with Seagate's innovative laptop-class 2.5" drive with 8GB of SSD cache, which provides a huge amount of storage along with excellent performance in your most-used applications (including the OS!). While this system does have support for a single full-size 3.5" hard drive, we recommend a smaller 2.5" drive to avoid the cable clutter unless you know you need more space than a 2.5" drive can provide.

The Guru's Tip:

Case:

The SG13 is the smallest ITX case available from any major manufacturer. There are smaller "kick-started" cases out there, but they often come with a whole lot of "gotchas." The SG13, on the other hand, is supported by the very biggest name in the ITX industry, SilverStone. At under 12 liters, it's truly tiny, but packs a big punch!

The Guru's Tip:

Fan:

The SG13 case does't include a fan, and while you can in theory run it without one, with the powerful components in this system, we strongly recommend you pick up this fan to install in the SG13's front fan mount.

The Guru's Tip:

Note that while the SG13 case has a cutout for a 140mm fan, you can't install a fan larger than 120mm and still have room for a full-size video card.

Power Supply:

Just because we're using an ITX case that can theoretically fit ATX power supplies doesn't mean we actually want to fill this little case with a big fat box and lots of cables. So we instead recommend this SFX-L unit, which is a lot more compact, allowing for better airflow and cable management. It's fully modular, offers Gold-rated efficiency, and at 500W, has more than enough power to support this system, which will only draw about 250W at load! The benefit of that 500W rating is that you could drop a Titan-class GPU in this system down the line and still have more than enough power.

The Guru's Tip:

This model comes with an SFX-to-ATX adapter bracket, but it's not the one you'll need to actually make this system fit together. See below for the correct one.

Adapter:

This nifty little component is what allows you to fit both an SFX-L power supply and the powerful NT06-Pro cooler into the SG13 case. Due to its large offset, it places the power supply all the way at the top of the case, making room for your CPU cooler.

The Guru's Tip:

Remember, the power supply comes with a similar bracket, but it's not the same, and will not work with this build.

CPU Cooler:

The SG13 case has limited clearance for coolers, and we go with the most powerful one that will fit. This 120mm-based model maximizes cooling potential while optimizing size, and we confirmed it will work with the low-profile Corsair RAM we recommend. To see for yourself how it fits, check out our hands-on Assembly Guide.

The Guru's Tip:

Because we recommend the use of an SFX-L power supply with a custom bracket, you can actually use this awesome cooler. Equipping the system with an ATX power supply would require the use of a much smaller cooler and would seriously limit CPU performance.